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Midway: Dauntless Victory: Fresh Perspectives on America's Seminal Naval Victory of World War II
This is an in-depth study of the battle of Midway that reviews the many previous accounts and compares their accuracy and veracity with fresh documentation that has been released recently, including new material on the post-war analysis made by a US select committee. There are new viewpoints on the muddle among the US Admirals; the total failure of the USAAF, despite elaborate claims; fresh thinking on the part played by the US Navy Dauntless dive-bombers in the action; the mystery of the carrier Saratoga's presence; Hollywood's totally wrong take on the battle in all the films since made about it. Also, included are new eyewitness accounts the author has obtained and information from Japanese sources that has never been previously published. The lengthy Appendices will include statistical details of the ships, the planes and the men.
1164 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 16, 2007
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About the author
Peter C. Smith
131 books4 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
Born Peter Charles Smith in North Elmham, Norfolk, in 1940, eldest son of Ernest & Eileen. Educated at Hamonds School, Swaffham. Married Patricia nee Ireson 1963. Two children, son Paul David and daughter Dawn Tracey.
Editor Balfour Books, Cambridge; Cape Sun, London; World War II Investigator, London.
After living in London, Kent and Cambridge now resides in a north-Bedfordshire village with his wife and Annie the Black Labby.
Born Peter Charles Smith in North Elmham, Norfolk, in 1940, eldest son of Ernest & Eileen. Educated at Hamonds School, Swaffham. Married Patricia nee Ireson 1963. Two children, son Paul David and daughter Dawn Tracey.
Editor Balfour Books, Cambridge; Cape Sun, London; World War II Investigator, London.
After living in London, Kent and Cambridge now resides in a north-Bedfordshire village with his wife and Annie the Black Labby.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 1, 2009
First, let me say that this book is not a narrative history of the Battle of Midway. Instead, it delves into specific details about the battle and discusses the various viewpoints taken by historians, past and present. As such, it is a book written for people (like me) who already know a great deal about the battle, and about the historical discussions and controversies associated with it.
Unfortunately, for a book that looks into aspects of the Battle of Midway in fine detail, there are an appalling number of typos and obvious (and some not so obvious) factual gaffes that, in my mind, render the author's credentials questionable. Things like referring Spruance's task force TF-6 instead of TF-16, or the Devastator torpedo bomber as a TBM instead of a TBD, or getting the US squadron commmanders mixed up, or worst of all, getting the date of the battle wrong (4 May instead of 4 June)! None of these errors are carried throughout the book, but they all appear more than once.
I'm giving this book 3 stars, because it does contain some good insights into the battle and its impact on WW2, but this book really needs to be reissued in a revised edition with all of the blatant mistakes fixed!
Unfortunately, for a book that looks into aspects of the Battle of Midway in fine detail, there are an appalling number of typos and obvious (and some not so obvious) factual gaffes that, in my mind, render the author's credentials questionable. Things like referring Spruance's task force TF-6 instead of TF-16, or the Devastator torpedo bomber as a TBM instead of a TBD, or getting the US squadron commmanders mixed up, or worst of all, getting the date of the battle wrong (4 May instead of 4 June)! None of these errors are carried throughout the book, but they all appear more than once.
I'm giving this book 3 stars, because it does contain some good insights into the battle and its impact on WW2, but this book really needs to be reissued in a revised edition with all of the blatant mistakes fixed!
August 20, 2025
Excellent detailed book
Much appreciated background in this book, very thorough providing details not available in most other books. A great read for the serious history buff.
Much appreciated background in this book, very thorough providing details not available in most other books. A great read for the serious history buff.
June 28, 2008
The last time I picked up a book on the Battle of Midway, it was Jon Parshall and Tony Tully's Shattered Sword. Considering Shattered Sword being very high regarded and enjoying nearly a "definitive" status, it sets quite a standard to those that follow.
With that said, I think, Peter C. Smith's Midway: Dauntless Victory may have just reached that high standard.
He adopted an approach where he presented all angles of the battle, American and Japanese, new findings and old (some proven wrong) theories. Take the misconception that the Japanese carriers' decks were packed full of aircraft for example, which had since been proven impossible by Jon Parshall and Tony Tully, he continued to express some of the American pilots' views from their recollections that they saw the Japanese decks busy with activity. "Who are we to deny them that memory, misguided or not?", Smith noted. He quoted Ray Wagner, noting that he was merely trying to write "impartially, without fear nor favor, as an historian should".
This review is published only in part on goodreads; for the entire review, please see:
http://ww2db.com/read.php?read_id=101
Needless to say, this is a book that I will recommend.
With that said, I think, Peter C. Smith's Midway: Dauntless Victory may have just reached that high standard.
He adopted an approach where he presented all angles of the battle, American and Japanese, new findings and old (some proven wrong) theories. Take the misconception that the Japanese carriers' decks were packed full of aircraft for example, which had since been proven impossible by Jon Parshall and Tony Tully, he continued to express some of the American pilots' views from their recollections that they saw the Japanese decks busy with activity. "Who are we to deny them that memory, misguided or not?", Smith noted. He quoted Ray Wagner, noting that he was merely trying to write "impartially, without fear nor favor, as an historian should".
This review is published only in part on goodreads; for the entire review, please see:
http://ww2db.com/read.php?read_id=101
Needless to say, this is a book that I will recommend.
July 8, 2012
I had high hopes for this book in the wake of Shattered Sword. However, if I had turned in a paper in high school with the grammatical errors contained in this book I'd have been forced to redo the work. This book is an absolute embarrassment to the author and editor. If the work can't be bothered to correct simple English grammar, how can I take its analysis and discussion at face value?
Until this book is edited by a professional, avoid at all costs. It's entirely too expensive for the grammatical mess you'll encounter.
Until this book is edited by a professional, avoid at all costs. It's entirely too expensive for the grammatical mess you'll encounter.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews